It wasn't long before I was home from the hospital after having kissed the most amazing girl in this world. I was ecstatic.

I just wanted to be around her at all times now. But I had to rest, under my beautiful doctor's orders. First, I had to tell my parents about this amazing step.

As soon as Vidal dropped me off I ran into the house to find my mother.

"Momma!" I called out.

"Gabriel? What happened, baby?" Momma asked me, running out of the kitchen with her lipgloss smudged.

"Oh... uh... your lipgloss...." I said, pointing to her face. "Also.... Speaking of that general subject, I've finally been kissed!"

"Doctor girl?!" Momma asked, her face lighting up as she wiped away the smudged lipgloss.

"Yes! And I'm finally able to take her on a date.... So, I need your help." I told my mother.

"You dad is the best at this stuff... but don't steal the beach theme, that's ours." Momma said with a smile.

"What's going on?" Dad asked, walking out of the kitchen in an apron with a spatula in his hand.

If Sophie wasn't around, either me or dad cooked, because Momma wasn't really the best at cooking and she never had to be, she was always around someone else who could cook for her.

"I have a date to plan." I said to him.

"When is this date?" He asked me.

"Soon. After tomorrow to be exact. But, Dad, I need it to be perfect." I said to him.

"Then go with the flow. Have something planned, but have a bunch of backups. You need to be able to change plans at any moment if the mood isn't right." Dad told me.

"Goodness, Dad... I'm not that smooth." I laughed.

"Yes, you are. Sophie is awkward like me, you're like your mother. Your mother is smooth." He said matter of factly.

Momma rolled her eyes and dragged us both to the couch.

We were at the little home that Sophie and Momma had first moved into together, but serious renovations had been done and it was expanded quite a bit. That's when Sophie arrived and just walked right in.

"I have come to save you from starvation, people!" Sophie said, walking in through the front door.

"Hey! My cooking is just fine!" Dad objected.

"Mine's better." She giggled, following dad's voice over to us.

"I made us some eggs for breakfast." Dad said.

"Ah, well. I brought you guys some lunch and dinner... no more cooking for you two." Sophie said, walking over and kissing both of our parents on their foreheads.

"Hey! Where's mine?!" I asked, pointing to my forehead.

My older sister laughed and walked over, squeezing my cheeks and kissing my forehead. She was about nineteen years older than me, so she was like a second mother to me, honestly.

"How's everything going?" She asked us.

"Gabriel is planning a date." Momma told her.

"Yes! I knew she'd agree eventually. Oh my goodness! She's going to be part of the family, I'm so excited!" Sophie giggled, hugging me tightly. "Where are you taking her?"

"I'm not sure yet." I smiled. "I don't think she's the kind to enjoy fancy dinners as dates. But then again, what else do you want to do when you want to get to know someone on a deeper level... we need room for conversation."

"Do something you would want to do... think about the things you want to share with her and then think about the kind of setting that would fit the conversation and take her there. I think a date is less about where you are and more about what you make of the place. You could take her to a mall and still have an amazing date... but don't take her to the mall." Sophie said to me.

"I agree with Sophie. Take her somewhere cute, a place that looks nice but where she can forget about other people. A place where all it has to be is you two and you can share anything you want.... it would be nice if you guys could get something from there to remember your first date." Dad told me.

"Ok... I know it sounds dumb... but she gets off work pretty late, I don't want to take her to a fancy restaurant, but I also don't want to take her to a diner. I was thinking... the street market down near the beach... it's so cute at night, the lights hung up everywhere give it a nice vibe. I was thinking we could walk around. I'll get her some food to eat and then we can just walk around." I said.

"Were you just planning on not eating?" Sophie asked me with narrowed eyes.

"I'll just have something to eat before I go get her... I don't want to get sick again, but I also don't think she wants to come to my family restaurant just yet." I said with a laugh.

"Well... here's what's going to happen. You're coming to Angel's, getting food, and then you're free to go wherever you want." Sophie told me.

"Sophie!" I complained.

"No." She shook her head. "You're coming to Angel's to get dinner, then you can do whatever you want."

"Fine. But you can't be weird about it." I said.

"I won't be weird about it... talk to your nephews." She laughed.

"Oh my goodness.... no. You talk to them, they don't listen to me." I laughed.

"They're grown men. They don't listen to me either." Sophie laughed.

"But you're like their mother." I said.

"Yes... how many times did I tell the boys not to do things and have them do it anyway?" She asked me.

"Like every single time." I sighed.

"Exactly... so handle them." Sophie laughed.

"Ugh... they're gonna embarrass me." I whined, knowing well that my nephews liked to take advantage of the fact that I turned bright red at the slightest sign of embarrassment.

"It's ok. You're a cutie, she's gonna love you. I'll make sure they don't do anything stupid." Sophie told me.

"Ok." I smiled. "Thanks, Soph."

"No problem. Now go get some rest, Idiot, I know you ate a Tim's muffin last night and got sick." Sophie sighed.

I smiled and kissed my mother and sister on the cheek, giving my father a pat on the back before I left to my bedroom. I had my own apartment, but I usually stayed over at my mother's place or in the family mansion.

I took a long nap, my body still somewhat exhausted from feeling so sick. I woke up feeling a lot better and I went to pick Ava up. This time, I took some food with me from home so that we could both eat something that wouldn't send me to the hospital again. Although, I'd be going to the hospital anyway to see Ava.

When I went into the hospital a few minutes later, the first thing I saw was Ava's angry frown. She stormed over to me and grabbed my hand, ready to drag me out of there. I looked behind her to see an angry man. A man I knew as her ex-boyfriend.

"Ava." I said gently, looking down at her face to determine whether she was alright or if she just needed me to get her out of here immediately.

"I wanna go home." She said softly.

"Alright. Let me talk to him." I said to her, seeing her big brown eyes look up into my own. She was so adorable even when she was upset.

"Go. Hurry, I wanna go home." She said to me.

I smiled and turned to the man, letting her continue hanging onto my hand.

"Who the hell are you?!" The guy asked, approaching us quickly.

"Uhm... I don't actually see why that's any of your business." I said to him.

"Get your hands off my girl." He said.

"Your girl? No, last I checked she was single. So, back off." I said.

"Who are you to tell me what to do?" He asked me.

"Me. I'm no one." I smiled, perfectly ok with being no one.

"Then, move aside and stay out of my business." He said to me.

"Uhm... no. I'm good. You're the one who came over here... and Ava doesn't want you around, so... why are you still here?" I asked him.

"For God's sake, Ava. What on earth is your problem? Who the hell is this idiot?" He asked her.

"He's a man that actually appreciates me for me. I don't have to do anything for him to be sweet to me. I can take my time, be comfortable and not get cheated on." Ava said.

"I... Ava. That was seven years ago." He said to her, as if that changed anything.

"Yeah and even though it's been so long, I'm still not prepared to sleep with you and I never will be. I still can't cook. I certainly don't fit your standards for wife material... Nothing has changed, nothing other than the fact that I'm a doctor despite how everyone thought I'd fail." She shrugged.

"I didn't mean any of the things I said." He said to her.

"I don't know what you want to hear... I'm not going to give you any chances. When it comes to me, there is one chance and one chance only." Ava said, squeezing my hand as she gained a little bit of courage.

"Come on, Ava. You and I had something. I've never... felt that way before." He said softly.

"Well, too bad you ruined it, I guess... can you stop coming back to me now? I forgive you, if that's what you want. I'm actually grateful that you rid me of a cheater, an empty relationship, and fake feelings. It was a huge mess, and I'm glad it ended... now I can find my real happiness elsewhere and I suggest you try to do the same." Ava said to him.

"So what? This is the guy you want to move on with?" He asked her, gesturing at me.

"No. I moved on a long time ago... like before I left Canton... This is the guy I see a potential future with. Just go find yourself someone else and never look back, Noah... the entire relationship wasn't worth even thinking about." I told him.

"What're you saying? You're saying I spent an entire year with someone for no reason?!" He asked angrily.

"Watch your tone." I said, my blood bubbling.

Ava looked up at me in shock and then her hand tightened around mine.

"Yeah... but you gained more than you lost, it was me who lost because of your selfish idiocy... stop playing the victim and acting like it was all just some mistake. Stop. It's over. Stop being pathetic. Leave me alone. Forget me. It's not like we even did anything." Ava sighed.

"Ava, what do you mean? I spent time on dates with you." He sighed. "We did something."

"No, Noah. I spent lots of wasted time on you. And it's over." She said.

"Listen. Do you guys want to sit down somewhere and talk this out?" I asked them.

I knew for sure that this was over for Ava. She didn't want this man back, and with good reason. Ava wanted to start something with me. But it was hard for me to sit here and listen to them talk about it. I wanted this to be over, once and for all.

"Yes. Let's sit down and talk about it." Her ex said.

"I don't have anything to say." Ava said, almost hugging my arm.

"I'll sit with you, if you want." I said to her.

"Fine." She nodded.

We all found a spot in the cafeteria and sat down at one of the tables. Ava pulled our chairs together and her ex-boyfriend sat across from us. She didn't seem to want to do this, but that's because she was over it. Her ex, on the other hand, was not, and he needed to understand that he wasn't getting her back.